Hello,
I want to ask, what you sue to oil you best garden shears. I use Ballistol but if there is something better. Just tell me what you use....

Second: I am trying to get a good desinfection solution for my budding knife. Since yet, I use a household desinfection solution, which contains Benzalkonium Chlorid and Ammonium chlorid and idustrial alcohol for desinfection.
The usuall recommended household bleach is not available in Germany and hydrogenium super oxid is very diffucult to get in local pharmacies. (the police found a terrorists shop, were hydrogenium super oxide was stored, to build bombs, and yet the regulatories about hydrogenium super oxide are very reglemented by law.)

So what else can I use for desinfection of my budding knife and without harming the plant and buds?

Oh, a blowtorch isn't realy what I want to use.
For flaming ants and as a 'hot herbicide', well good... but for a knife...
Themperature will allways have effect to metal, especially to the cutting edge of a knife of a shears. So bringing the edge of such a valuable tool to high temperatures is not very good for any prunning or cutting tool.
That's why my good kitchen knife does not get machine washed or washed with to high temperatures.

So, please excuse, but flame desinfection would not be realy an alternative to me.

I thought Germans use high quality stainless steel that are annealed at ultra-high temperature?

I have several pruning saw, knives, shears, given as a gift by a good friend from Germany, and they're the best that I've used even with propane torch.

I sharpen my swiss budding knife with a leather strap from time to time.

Taking out a bud from budstick, I now use a carpet blade cutter which is ultra-sharp. After about 200 buds cut, I throw away the blade and pop in a super sharp new replacement blade. No need to sharpen nor clean. 2 dozen blades is about $7. That's about a whole year's supply without stopping to sharpen.

Dear Joe,
because of the high quality, I would not use a blowtorch. A smith once told me: "A blade sees the fire only once: When it is made and annealed!"
Each time more will affect the cutting edge and bring it close to annealinf temperatures again and affect only the sharpest part of the blade: The cutting edge. Each putting in flame will soften the cutting edge more and more.... so I believe in the smith and do not hold I cutting edge into the fire.

Because as higher the quality, like the famous damast forged blades, as more snesitive the cutting edgge is.

That's why I asked.... because some liquids can also affect the cutting edge.

After a tip now, I will try sodium hypochloride, which is available here in Germany, as desinfection.
For oiling it seems that continuing to use the Ballistol.

while the smith may be correct, I did not experience degradation in quality, at least not in my lifetime. What the smith has suggested might be for tools that can be passed on down to generations, then we can see the long term effects. Practically at the rate of inventions and technological developments, either the tools will get replaced or recycled but who among the future generation would want to inherit old tools anyway? I am not sure they would even find the passion like we do.

All chloride containing cleansing chemicals are sure to corrode metals and can make the sharp blades dull. So I would use new blades which are still way cheaper for the cutter.

There are chemical sharpeners though, have you looked into that?

A cleaning product like Rohrfrei has enough bleach in it to easily sterilize.
However, there is also caustic products in it, I don't know if they would damage a knife.

Talking to Bonnie on the telephone last night he told me that most all professional budders just use a simple bleach solution.

Yes, products like that are corrosive, but you aren't soaking your knife in it, only cleaning?

How are you guys sterilizing your tools, anyhow?

I use bleach mixed 1 part to 10 or stronger. I keep this in an old spray bottle and renew the bottle fairly often because I have heard the bleach will turn to a gas and vaporize rather quickly. After the knife is sterile, I rinse it in clean water. Before I put the knife up (utility knife included), I oil it with WD 40 and wipe it clean before I put it up.

Ned

Ned, do you just spray and rinse or do you let the bleach stay there for a while?
Oh, my husband Mr. Wizard just told me 10 minutes! For spore formers like bacilli. For everything else, like yeast, 1minute. He also said organisms like Erwinia only need a few seconds.
He also said a 1% solution should be fine. I think my old boss (Mr. Bleach) would say even less.

Susan, I just dip it, but I do leave in the bleach for maybe 5 to 10 seconds to make sure it is thoroughly wet. I have never seen any guidelines as to how long. I have often thought that adding a surfactant, or sticker spreader, to the bleach solution, might help the bleach adhere to the knife better. I have also wondered in the spray oil has a sterilizing effect. I would guess it does to some extent.

Ned